From Cod to Culture: What Inishmore Teaches Us About the Experience Economy

The David McWilliams Podcast

David McWilliams

News & Politics

4.5 • 693 Ratings

🗓️ 18 September 2025

⏱️ 41 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Between 250,000-300,000 tourists land on the island every year, 2,500 a day in summer, and yet it still feels authentic, alive, and deeply Irish. In this episode, we ask: how do remote places like Inishmore thrive in today’s economy, while once-wealthy regions like France’s Île de Ré struggle with emptying out? We dig into the wild history of cod and salt (the currency of empires), why Ireland salted beef instead of fish, and how the Aran Islands are now punching above their weight in the global experience economy. From lobster-pot pubs to the death of distance, we explore what makes people pay not just for goods and services, but for memory, tribe, and authenticity.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	Just before we start, today is a big.
0:02.9	In fact, it's a massive week.
0:04.4	It is the week that Kilkenomics tickets go on sale.
0:07.5	Kilkenomics is on 7th to 9th of November in Kilkenny.
0:10.9	Tickets on general release from Thursday 18th.
0:15.0	Tickets at kilkenomics.com.
0:17.3	Get online because those tickets, they go fast.
0:19.8	And we'll see you in Kilkenny, 7th to 9th of
0:22.7	November.
0:28.1	Hey, it's Adam Grant from Worklife, a podcast from TED. This episode is brought to you by Freshworks.
0:34.5	Freshworks believes the complexity is the enemy of efficiency, so stop wrestling with
0:38.9	bloated, expensive service software that takes forever to implement an update, where ROI is
0:43.7	someday, not today.
0:45.6	You've been overcharged and underserved for way too long.
0:49.2	Uncomplicate with fresh service for IT and fresh desk for customer support.
0:54.5	And with FreshWorks' AI-assisted service software,
0:57.4	you'll work smarter, not harder.
0:59.6	FreshWorks uncomplicates.
1:01.7	Learn more at freshworks.com.
1:04.4	The dreaded CV scrolling, the never-ending interviewing.
1:09.0	If recruiting is a bit of a nightmare,
1:11.6	try building a dream team that works in perfect harmony.
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from David McWilliams, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of David McWilliams and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.